


Utopia

by calisotas



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Character Study, Dreams, Dreams vs. Reality, F/M, Father-Son Relationship, One Shot, Other, Relationship Study, Short One Shot, Unrequited Love, latter two are described from vlads pov but are still heavily featured
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-09
Updated: 2020-01-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:40:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22178716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/calisotas/pseuds/calisotas
Summary: Vlad muses on his famous rivalry with Amity Park's other half-ghost and the inner conflict he has over the situation.
Relationships: Danny Fenton & Vlad Masters
Kudos: 43





	Utopia

**Author's Note:**

> ok, so i haven't rewatched danny phantom for a hot minute... but i've always loved vlad, so i wanted to try and get back into the spirit by writing a little character study fic for him. please note that this isn't meant to be romantic vlad/danny- i just like exploring tumultuous father/son dynamics that are always solely platonic. thanks, and enjoy the story!

Vlad Masters hated Danny Fenton.

He hated how easily the boy seemed to overpower him each time they clashed. Hated that whenever he set foot outside his mansion, he would be found and accused of whatever horrible plot was cooking up in Danny’s young, pathetic mind, even on the most uneventful days. Hated every supposedly hilarious comment on his loneliness that seemed to arise on the daily.

He supposed he should be grateful. He wasn’t getting any younger, and not many men his age had the opportunity to face the sort of challenge Danny always brought with him, especially on such frequent occasions. It certainly gave him something to do, to maybe even look forward to. But there was one thing stopping him from appreciating what he was given- his opponent was a child who had only been honing his powers for a year or two. Vlad had dealt with the same issues the boy faced decades before he was born, and at this point had grasped virtually everything there was to know about who he was and what he could do- for the longest time he had actually believed he was the sole individual capable of such feats. And then, suddenly, a young new face locked eyes with him, and not only proved that there were more who could wield the same power, but that there were those who could master said power in mere months. At first, Danny proved to be no threat- he must have just been thrust into this brand new world of ghosts and magic back then- but each time they met he grew, and eventually, he had seemed to become a young man who was evenly matched with his elder. Vlad found the improvement endearing, as if he had passed down this innate knowledge, until the fateful day his opponent surpassed his ability. This revelation shook him to his core, filling him with a rage he had only felt but once before when the love of his life married another- how fitting that the result of that marriage was the very individual causing all this conflict.

Yet, at the same time, something was lurking deep within that also despised himself for feeling the way he did. Maybe it was the fact that he and Danny both cared for Mrs. Fenton, or that they were the only half-ghosts known to man- vastly different souls cut from the same cloth. Maybe it was because deep down, he knew the child was right, that he had nothing. He was pathetic and lonely, so much so that even bitter interactions gave him solace in some way, though of course he would never verbally admit it. Whatever the reason, that self-loathing lingered in the back of his mind each time the boy crossed it, coming out in its fullest form during almost-sleepless nights spent in a bed too big for his singular being. Those were the nights he dreamed about both of them.

It almost pained him to imagine a perfect life, but he supposed it was the only thing keeping him from truly lashing out. He knew he had a reputation as a villain, or at the very least as a predictably corrupt public figure, but even he had his limits. And thus, as he lie there cold and alone, he would allow that utopian vision to overtake him, engulfing all senses in a wave of fantasy. Madeline was the first to materialize, of course. She was no stranger to his mindscape. However, in this instance, her presence was even more awing; throughout the vignettes and the fuzzy memories, every line on her face was permanently preserved for hours after he had awoken, engraining themselves further each time she smiled. There was almost something unnatural about them, as much as they pleased him. He assumed it was because she was never so happy in reality, at least when they crossed paths. The inflated ego he wore so often wanted him to believe that, in turn, said reality was a result of her supposedly dysfunctional marriage, but of course the voice lurking further within knew better. Yet, despite all this conflict, in the moments they happened and in his immediate memory, they were predominantly pleasant images and he wished more than anything that they would one day reflect who she truly was. 

And that was ignoring Danny’s role.

In this utopia, the younger half-ghost was Vlad’s child prodigy; or possibly an adopted son, a manifestation of his infatuation with Maddie, the young man’s powers, and that hidden desire to mean something all at once. Of course he had learned the tools of the trade so quickly! He was being taught by the first and, naturally, the best. Their battles between one another became allyship united against common enemies. He finally had someone with whom he could share both the euphoria and the agony of their condition. Hours of stories passed by in minutes- tales of high school trauma and failed relationships long since passed. Unpleasant encounters not with the boy, but with the man who had fathered him in reality. Danny would nod and listen, chime in when he felt he could relate. It seemed to fill a hole in Vlad that he didn’t truly know he had- and that was perhaps the most striking thing he would realize when he awoke. 

It hit him hard one particular night, spent more in solid thought than the world of dreams. 

One thing was for certain. He hated Jack Fenton. That he knew. 

But perhaps Danny wasn’t so bad after all.


End file.
